Category Archives: Valentine’s Day

Candy — especially chocolate! — is one of our favorite things to eat so it’s no surprise that Valentine’s Day is an exciting day for candy and chocolate lovers. It’s one day we throw our resolutions for disciplined diets out the window and we can indulge in our favorite treats. The tradition of candy and chocolates on Valentine’s Day had to start somewhere, so we did a little bit of digging to figure out why we give our sweethearts sweets on Valentine’s Day.

Romance We know St. Valentine as the Roman bishop who, in the third century, performed secret marriages for soldiers when it was forbidden. St. Valentine was jailed for this and wrote his jailer’s daughter a letter and signed it “Your Valentine.” This where it is believed the Valentine as we know it was born, but it was hundreds of years before candy became part of the tradition.

Sweets to the Sweet The idea of Valentine’s was preserved through word of mouth and tradition for the next few hundred years — and then literature set the word in stone. Geoffrey Chaucer’s 14th century poem “Parliament of Fowls” was the first literary reference to Valentine’s Day, but it was Shakespeare who made the reference “sweets to the sweet” in Hamlet in the early 1600s.

Food of Love Chocolate has a chemical in it called phenylethylamine. It’s a stimulant that’s released in the brain when people fall in love. The Aztecs, who discovered the cocoa bean, recognized this quality early on. In the early 15th century, Aztec leader Montezuma allegedly indulged in cocoa beans for his romantic rendezvous. Aztecs also used it as gifts and served it at weddings.

Chocolates for Boxes After chocolate was introduced to Europe, it was initially only consumed as a beverage until the 1840s when manufacturers figured out how to make it into solid candies. Many credit chocolatier Richard Cadbury for Valentine’s Day chocolates. It’s a popular theory that he was the person behind the heart-shaped boxes when his father’s chocolate recipe evolved from drinking chocolate to eating chocolate in the late 1800s. While Richard Cadbury did design elaborate boxes for fancy chocolates, the company doesn’t claim he was the person who popularized Valentine’s Day boxes of chocolate. However, according to the New York Times, confectioners started selling Valentine’s Day chocolates in heart-shaped boxes in the 1890s.

Candy Chat About the same time Cadbury was perfecting chocolate, a Massachusetts company was innovating other types of sweets. New England Confectionery Company (NECCO) designed the first candy machine in 1847. In 1866, they started producing “Conversation Candies,” a precursor to conversation hearts. It was around 1902 Sweetheart conversation hearts began production. Those conversation candies are still made today with updated phrases. This year’s new phrases include “BFF” (Best Friends Forever), “TE AMO” (I love you in Spanish), “JE T’AIME” (I love you in French), and “Pugs and Kittens” (for animal lovers).

While there may not be an actual connection between sweets and sweethearts, Valentine’s Day is an excuse to eat chocolate and candy guilt-free. Whether you use the day to feed your sweet tooth or you take the day to honor your sweetheart, the tradition of sending Valentine’s Day candy will live on.

It’s time for the end-of-month round up of February’s popular pins! We expected a lot of lovey-dovey pins, but there was more variation than anticipated! A surprising number of people were far too excited for the prospect of spring to get hung up in hearts and roses all month. There are also plenty of fun Irish-inspired pins for St. Patrick’s Day, which is always a fun time. Check out some of our favorite pins from February!

LOVE-Signed Wedding Frames

We expect these kinds of pins throughout February, as lovers and spouses come up with ways to celebrate their love throughout the month. Well, these Wedding Frames by Marla Rae are a creative way to do just that. The most popular frame has each letter of the word “LOVE” shaped with hands and silhouetted against the distressed brick background. It’s the perfect frame for an 8×10 wedding or engagement photo, which is why everyone loved it last month! It is also available in red with hands shaping a heart instead.

Hot Dog Slicer Kitchen Gadget

It looks like our Pinterest followers are more than ready for barbecue season! Despite February being the month of love, this hot dog slicer was one of the most popular pins for the entire month! Perfect for quickly cutting up kids’ hotdogs this summer, you can even put these fun Dachshund-shaped gadgets out for a funny display. Simply place the hot dog in the base of the gadget, and slice down with the dog! Add ketchup to the condiment bowl and you’re done! Kids are happy.

Anger knows no season, which might be why this hilarious Anger Management Mug had a following all month long! These great novelty mugs come in four shapes and styles, all to add a little more humor to your morning brew. Got a grouchy coworker? We propose gifting this ‘I flunked anger management’ mug to lighten the mood in the office and keep things fun. Maybe wait to fill it with hot coffee though.

St. Patrick’s Day Magnet Art

Everyone in the U.S. is gearing up for St. Patrick’s Day, since it’s one of the only holidays without too much drama. Everyone can celebrate it, whether you’re Irish or not, and it’s a holiday surrounded by parties, drinking, and green treats! This seasonal magnet art is always popular for March, and the shamrocks are perfect for decorating your dishwasher! This large one-piece magnet fits the front of most dishwashers, but can also be used to decorate the fridge or freezer, or cut into smaller squares and shamrocks to decorate all three!

Kids’ Owl Packs and Lunch Bags (Insulated)

How adorable is this owl design? These cute owl backpacks and insulated lunch bags are the perfect accessories to your kid’s day. Pinners love sending healthy lunches to school with their kids, especially at the beginning of the year. Unfortunately, it’s hard to send much more than a sandwich unless you’ve got an insulated pack to keep it cool! We love these insulated bags and matching backpack in the adorable owl print. In fact, we like this print so much we’d understand if you got these bags for yourself!

Happy Valentine?s Day! The day of love is here, so how could we not focus on our favorite fun and romantic items today? We really hope that you aren?t scrambling for gifts and ideas this morning, because you should already have everything wrapped and ready for a big night ahead! Here are some of the great items we?re using today for a romantic evening, or gifting to our loved ones tonight.

Give a Hoot Sentiment Wall Art

We all know that owls are adorable, and these cute sentiment?wall art?pieces are a great gift for your significant other, your kids, or your fun-loving parents. We love these as gifts for ourselves too! Choose from ?Owl Always Love You,? and ?I Love You To The Moon and Back.?

Marla Rae Wedding Frames

This creative Love Frame is a great gift for the newlywed couple still trying to frame a few of their wedding pictures! It?s a really unique way to display any 8×10 photo?at home. We really love this one as a gift for your sweetheart no matter how long you?ve been married. You can choose from the sign language LOVE or the hands making a heart for whichever fits your home best.

Kitchen Krumblers Apple Cinnamon Dessert Candles

What better way to set the mood than by turning off the overhead lights and lighting a few scented candles? We love the soft glow of the flickering candlelight and the amazing scents available with the Kitchen Krumblers Dessert Candles! Who needs to make cinnamon apple pie when you?ve got these amazing candles?

Not into the whole flickering candlelight thing? Many of us have young kids and pets wandering around the house, so an open flame just isn?t going to cut it! You can still have the beautiful scent of candles for a romantic evening without the actual flame with these simmering fragrance chips and warmer! You can even trick your loved ones into thinking you?ve baked oatmeal cookies with their Oatmeal Cookie scent!

LOVE Sheets Sets

Seasonal sheets are such a fun way to spruce up the bedroom, and we are digging these adorable LOVE sheets sets for young girls this February! Pair it with an ombre pink comforter, or even a white duvet to keep the pink a little more muted. Fun and funky!

Peace, Love, & Cupcakes Beauty Sets

We love these adorable Peace, Love, & Cupcakes sets of lip-glosses, shower gels, or body mists for the young girls in our lives. These beauty sets are our go-to gifts for nieces and daughters this Valentine?s Day, and we?ve even seen girls split them up to pair with a Valentine?s Day card for all their female friends. You can get a single pack, or grab the whole bunch!

If you see something here you love – you can always order it to give as a late gift, or pack it away for next year’s Valentine’s Day!

Chocolate sales for Valentine?s Day reach more than one billion dollars in the United States each year, Americans eat 12 pounds of chocolate each year, and more than 58 million pounds of chocolate and chocolate candies are sold during Valentine?s week.

If you?re a chocoholic you definitely don?t need a holiday to get you thinking about this delicious dark concoction. We?ve got a quick and simple guide to help you see the major differences in chocolates, and figure out what type of chocolate pairs best with wine, fruit, and more. Now you can really perfect your Valentine?s Day dessert.

Cacao vs. Cocoa?

We?ll start with the trickiest question: what?s the difference between cacao and cocoa? Well, nothing. They?re actually the very same thing, just with different spellings and pronunciations. When you see cacao nibs and cocoa powder, you?re seeing the very same thing in different forms. Now that you?ve got that out of the way, let?s look at the three common types of chocolate: white, milk, dark.

White Chocolate

White chocolate is more commonly referred to as a chocolate derivative, because it doesn?t contain chocolate solids.? White chocolate is much sweeter than traditional chocolates, and is made with cocoa butter, sugar, and milk. It pairs well with more delicate flavors, including apple, peach, and strawberry.

Milk Chocolate

Milk chocolate is exactly what it sounds like. Made from cocoa, sugar, and the addition of dairy, milk chocolate is lighter in color and taste, creamier, and sweeter than dark chocolate, but not as sweet as white chocolate.

Dark Chocolate?

Simply made from cacao or cocoa butter and sugar, dark chocolate has the highest concentration of antioxidants, and a slightly bitter taste. An emulsifier or flavor enhancer like vanilla is commonly added, but dark chocolate never contains milk. The percentage of cacao denotes the flavor, and can range from sweet (30%) to bitter (80% or higher).

Chocolate Pairings?

And now onto the fun stuff: the best pairings for chocolate! Take notes so you can bring chocolate to your Valentine?s Day celebration! There are three important things to consider: amount of sugar, consistency and fat content, and preference. If you know beyond a doubt that your significant other hates dark chocolate, just don?t use it!

Wine: The standard rule of thumb with wine is: the darker the chocolate, the darker the wine. Dark chocolate is the recommended wine pairing in most situations. The bitter components of dark chocolate will bring out the sweeter aspects of the wine, but a sweeter option, like milk or white chocolate can bring out the bitter aspects of the wine. (Not a great idea.) Here are a few quick tips to help you choose.

Strawberries: This comes down to both personal preference, as well as the quality of the strawberries. Since you should be melting the chocolate pieces in a double boiler with butter, you can control the consistency, meaning the sugar or cocoa butter content of the chocolate isn?t as important. If you have super ripe and sweet strawberries, bittersweet chocolate works best here, but for lighter or more sour strawberries, both milk and white chocolate will bring extra sweetness for a more balanced bite. For pairing chocolate with other fruits, check out these fruit and chocolate tips!

Ganache: Most people recommend dark chocolate for ganache. When ganache is made, the flavors and sugars are concentrated, so a chocolate with less sugar to start, such as dark, is your best bet. Additionally, ganache is usually paired with something creamy and high in fat, so dark chocolate performs best here.

Fudge: Any! You can use any type of chocolate to make fudge, but if you?re making it at home from scratch, it?s best to use a pure cocoa powder flavor that you love, such as Special Dark or regular Milk chocolate. Just adjust the added sugar to balance the sweetness of the chocolate.

Cookies: Finally, what chocolate to use with chocolate chip cookies? There are diehards out there who will only make their beloved chocolate chip cookies with semi-sweet chocolate chips (milk chocolate), but we say: experiment! That?s the best thing about cookies. They?re already sweet and savory and sometimes a little salty, so you can actually pair most cookies with each type of chocolate, depending on your preference. Try those oatmeal chocolate chip cookies with dark chocolate chunks, and try white chocolate with savory options like Rosemary Brown Butter cookies, Molasses cookies, or Earl Grey Tea cookies.

It?s that time again ? the Pinterest Pins roundup! While we spend time recovering from the holidays and reinventing our live with New Year?s Resolutions, many pinners already have their eye on Valentine?s Day and spring-related items. We?ve got a list of many favorite and popular pins from January, just in time for the month of love!

Gourmet Valentine?s Day Apples

Starting off with a bang, these Gourmet Valentine?s Day Apples are a great gift for loved ones, family members, kids, and even coworkers this Valentine?s Day! Let your kids bring them to school for their teacher ? the absolute perfect gift. These Granny Smith apples are coated in caramel and then dipped in either fudge or white chocolate and decorated with icing and sprinkles. They?re the perfect balance between healthy and sugary for adult Valentine?s Day treats, and they?re only going to grow in popularity between now and February 14th, so be sure to check them out now!

Handprint Heart Charms

Are these adorable or what? These great handprint heart charms for a charm bracelet are popular as Valentine?s Day gifts for kids, and they?re available with all twelve birthstones to match your child?s birth month. You can also let them choose the gemstone based on their favorite colors instead of by their birth month. It?s a great way to let your kids know you?re thinking about them all day long ? and that they?re your TRUE Valentines! We?ve got all options in stock over at LTD Commodities, so check them out today!

Taking a break from the Valentine?s Day pins, these Sleep Tite sheet sets are very popular for when you?re making the switch from warm fleece and flannel sheets to cool and comfortable materials for spring. These unique sheets are made to fit any mattress and stay in place no matter how much you toss and turn throughout the night. The 300-thread count and silky smooth material makes for the perfect lightweight sheet set that will stay put all night long! They?re great for both thick pillow tops and thin, firm mattresses. Just like our pinners, you?ll love these comfortable, practical sheets ? in four sizes and three colors!

As we end another week, we?ve got much to look forward to this weekend! Today is the first day of the Chinese New Year, and Sunday is the biggest football game of the season. Plus, the month of love is upon us, and Valentine?s Day is right around the corner. Today we?ve highlighted items relating to each of these fun and festive occasions.

Bentley?s 120-Count Tea Collection Tins

In addition to the red envelope tradition for the Chinese New Year, small gifts of food or sweets are traditionally given to celebrate the coming of a New Year. Join in the festivities with your own fun and festive gift. We like these tea collection tins with six different flavors for the tea lover. You can always pair this tea collection with a nice porcelain tea set for one!

Ticket Memento Storage Boxes

Are you a sucker for mementos and memories? Or just saying goodbye to another seasons of great games and good times? Whether you save every little movie ticket, or only the important things like tickets to The Great Wall of China, this ticket memento storage box is a great way to keep those tickets in one place, and display them in your home. They?re only as good as the memory they created, so choose wisely.

Just in time for delivery by Valentine?s Day, these framed love letters wall art pieces are the perfect way to personalize a great piece of art. Get names and dates added to this personalized wall art for a nice touch to your Valentine?s Day gift. This is the perfect supplement to a gift this year.

16-Piece NFL Party Drink Sets

With the biggest sports event right around the corner, we couldn?t end this list without a little something for the NFL fans out there. If you?re having a party for the big game, you?re probably stocking up on snacks, plates, and cups for the long afternoon ahead. When it comes to fun drinkware, we?ve got you covered. Check out these great NFL party drink sets and find your favorite team!?The 8 glasses come with a matching coaster for each! (Not all teams are available.)

We?re less than a month away from the most romantic holiday of the year, so here?s the question: are you ready? If you really want to make your significant other happy, it?s a good idea to show a little forethought for this day, which is why we?ve compiled a short checklist to help you along. With 3 weeks to go, these are the things you should be taking care of right now

Gift

Some say the gift is the most important part, while others think it?s just an added bonus if you get it right. Either way, there?s no point in dropping a few hundred dollars if the recipient isn?t going to like or use your gift. Make sure you?re paying attention to something they might want. It?s early enough that she probably won?t get suspicious if you snoop through her clothes or check ring sizes around now, so find out what you need to know as stealthily as you can.

Dinner and Reservations

Whether you?re planning to hit the hottest restaurant in town, or you?d like to prepare a nice dinner for two at home, special meals take some sort of preparation. Now is the time to call potential restaurants and find out what kind of menu they?ll have for Valentine?s Day, and see if they have slots available for the time you?d like to eat. If you?re thinking of planning a nice meal in, you should start looking up recipes, or checking local delivery menus. If you?re cooking at home, think about testing out the recipe around now to see how hard or easy it really is, and to make sure you have all the kitchen accessories you need to create the meal.

Transportation is often overlooked, but is an essential part of creating a successful evening. Are you thinking about wine pairings at the restaurant, or grabbing a cocktail before dinner at home? Will you have far to travel or should you plan to walk? But if you want to walk, will that change your outfit or your wife?s high heels? Make sure you have a back up plan in the form of a designated driver or a cab driver on call. It?s always better to be prepared, than to find yourself a few martinis deep without a cab on the way.

Babysitter

Finally, if you?ve got kids, now is the time to book your babysitter! Whether you?re asking your younger brother to sleep over with the kids, or you need to hire another sitter for the night, it?s important to lock that in before it gets close to the big day! When it comes to major holidays like New Year?s Eve and Valentine?s Day, babysitters are harder to get than reservations at the most popular restaurant in town! Be willing to pay a little extra than usual if necessary, and make sure you?ve got a confirmed sitter for the night before finalizing your plans.

There are certain pieces of memorable jewelry that most women – regardless of their style – would love to own. Monogrammed jewelry is that special category we’re talking about. Beautiful, classic, and elegant, these types of accessories are excellent gift ideas you might want to consider for a spouse, girlfriend, or mother. Monogrammed jewels are usually available in the shape of several initials. It can be from a name, or it can sum up an entire word. The engraving is extremely special too, so if you’re looking for an ideal gift, think no further and opt for such unique jewelry types.

Different monogram styles
Prior to investing your money in monogrammed jewelry pieces, it might be a good idea to get to know the style first. It should fit the personality of your loved one, it should come in a great color, and of course, it must have the correct engraved initials. If you’re looking for monogram jewelry as gifts, it’s best to find something that can matches the character and spirit of the one you adore most.

Block Lettering
Block lettering is an amazing style of monogrammed jewelry.Suitable for men, such items usually come in the shape of a necklace. Bold, strong, and classic, monogramming jewelry in the block lettering style will certainly appeal to the senses of your fiancé or spouse. The monogram usually features capital letters in order to convey a robust look and a strong manly accessory.

Interlocking monogrammed piecesFor women usually contain the first, last, and middle name initials. The initial of the woman’s last name have to be the largest and placed in the center. If you’re looking to surprise your girlfriend with a couples monogram jewelry set, you can always combine her initials with yours. You’ll surely manage to astound your loved one, not to mention such romantic types of gifts are genuine proofs of love and commitment.

Monogrammed jewelry for men and women as ideal gift ideas
You don’t have to be Greek to receive or give a monogrammed necklace engraved with such beautiful letters. This style is perfect for those who want to make an original gift for someone they love. You can always write their initials in Greek letter to make your present stand out. As far as the material is concerned, you can never go wrong with gold, sterling silver, or platinum. It’s amazing how beautiful Greek letters can look on a piece of jewelry, so if you’re out of gift ideas, opting for monogrammed accessories will certainly make an impression.

While women love to receive necklaces and earrings, men would definitely appreciate monogrammed signet rings and cufflinks. If you’re running out of ideas, the following items might just help you make an amazing selection:

A Bracelet with monogrammed initials
A beautiful bracelet is absolutely divine. Your girlfriend will simply adore it. Make sure to engrave her initials, or have something meaningful imprinted to help her remind the present forever. It’s really important that to opt for quality silver, and if your budget is more substantial, golden monogrammed bracelets are even more amazing for women.

Monogrammed cufflinks
Men deserve to be loved and appreciated just as much as women. Hence, if you’re looking for an original gift idea, a set of cufflinks with his initials engraved will definitely blow him away. It doesn’t have to be a special occasion, and if you feel that your loved one deserves a gift, think no more and make a sensible investment. Who knows maybe you’ll get a diamond ring in return?

Are you looking for a special gift but you’re out of ideas? Does buying simple jewelry sound a bit too dull? Then maybe it’s time to think outside the box and opt for monogrammed jewelry for your loved one. Both men and women love to be spoiled with present. Hence, you can never go wrong if you choose to buy your spouse a pretty necklace. Men are a bit more pretentious, so if they’re not into perfumes and watches maybe you can win his heart with a set of beautiful monogrammed cufflinks. They don’t have to be made of platinum to be appreciated, and as long as you picked the ideal type of engraving, your husband will love them.